Anything Worth Doing is Worth OVERDOING!

I have that saying taped to the wall in my office, and it’s been a consistent theme throughout my life. If I’m going to take up running, I’ll join the cross country team. If I want to get fit, I’ll register for a triathlon. If I want to go biking, I’ll be doing a Century ride. If I’m having wine, I’m having the bottle. If eating chocolate, I’m eating the whole damn 1lb Reese Peanut Butter Bunny. You get the picture.

ANA Milwaukee invited me to emcee the Bell Awards. I am honored, and, honestly, nervous. I invited Josh, my fiancé, C2 colleague, lead singer of the Cheap Shots and front of house manager for the Bud Pavilion, to join me, since he has ACTUAL emcee experience and doesn’t get nervous or jittery on stage. I told the ANA board members who invited me to do the awards that I’m a better foil than front man. They said, “Just be yourself, you’ll be great.” Oh boy.

In the spirit of anything worth doing is worth OVERDOING, I’m planning on going BIG and then going home at #BellsBash2019. I have a ridiculous sequined floor length dress, a feather boa, bright pink glasses, nails and shoes, and I’ll have some big ‘ole Tammy Faye Baker hair and makeup. I’m going all Met Gala campy on the Bell Awards. And why not? I’m just representing C2, a company that has over 50 working creative Talent who rely on us for their income… Hmmm, is this a good idea? Or a great idea?

It’s probably somewhere in the middle, and frankly, it’s all about execution. I’m all for taking chances and for being fearlessly myself. I’m a goof, I love to laugh and while I have plenty of pride, I have no shame, so if I’m going to camp it up, I’m going ALL THE WAY!

And that’s how I want EVERYONE to show up. I want them to be unapologetically themselves, fearlessly and proudly. Especially C2 Talent.

I’ve had a bunch of interviews in the last 3 weeks with C2 Talent candidates. Some very talented creatives (copywriters, animators, project managers, designers, art directors and even a product manager) who have shown up in my office feeling beaten down by their job search. When I meet with a Talent, I already know they can do the job, because we’ve tested their software skills and reviewed their portfolio. During C2’s interview process, we focus on finding out HOW they do the job, how they show up. And then we ask them to PROVE IT via a functional resume. Most of them push back and say, “I need the chronological resume,” and I agree, they do. AND they need a functional resume that focuses on their aspirations, accomplishments and character. That too, is all about execution.

My interviews tend to turn into pep talks. People are resistant to “bragging” about themselves. They want to be modest, professional and appeal to hiring managers. I agree with that too, yet I see tremendous value in pushing Talent to tell their story, in their voice, so that the people who trust C2 to find them a copywriter, creative director or project manager can instantly understand that, in addition to being able to do the job, that candidate also likes hiking, gardening, yoga; has tattoos or a crazy hobby or has traveled the world, sailed the Great Lakes or plays guitar. It all matters. You want people to be their authentic selves because that’s who is going to show up for work every day. When you get a resume for a C2 Talent, just know that they’ve been coached into OVERDOING it on a functional resume to highlight their aspirations, character and accomplishments, because if a resume is worth doing, it’s worth OVERDOING.

Check the C2 and ANA Business Marketing Milwaukee social media channels to see if I pull off my campy look or fall off the stage, or both!